Dust In The Wind
by XachMustel
Summary: 101 Dalmatian Street. After Diesel digs in Clarissa's garden, the corgi performs an act of unspeakable evil that will ultimately tear the Dalmatian family apart.
1. That Fateful Afternoon

Deepak took in a deep breath as he sat on the lawn, sitting in the lotus position as he normally did. Everything seemed so calm and peaceful until a large clump of dirt came soaring through the air and landed directly on his head. Growling, Deepak's eyes shot open and he turned to glare at the offender. Immediately, he saw Diesel digging through a patch of nearby grass, giggling merrily.

Scowling, Deepak got up and slowly marched over to where Diesel was digging, "Ahem! Diesel, we need to have a talk."

"Yes? What is it Deepak?" Diesel asked, stopping his digging.

"If it's not too much trouble to ask would you I don't know um...mind DIGGING SOMEWHERE ELSE?! In case you haven't noticed, I was trying to find my inner cat but you just had to go and fling dirt in my face!" Deepak snarled, an angry look crossing his normally sweet and gentle face.

Diesel gasped in shock and his ears wilted, "I'm sorry, Deepak. I didn't know..."

"You never know!" Deepak snapped back, "All you care about is playing in the mud and digging. YOU were the reason our house got flooded that one time! Do you have any idea just how long it took for me to find my peace after that little incident?"

"Um..." Diesel rubbed his paw on his chin.

"TWO WHOLE WEEKS!" Deepak lashed out, "It took me two weeks before I could align with my chi again so do me and the rest of our family a favor and dig elsewhere!"

"Okay, Deepak." Diesel replied sadly, getting out of the garden and walking away slowly.

As he walked away from the upset yoga pup, he noticed a patch of loose dirt at the fence that separated the Dalmatians' yard from Clarissa's yard and immediately brightened up. Without a second thought, Diesel got to digging and popped up on Clarissa's side. Giggling, he walked over to her rose garden and spoke out loud to himself, "Maybe if I dig up some of those beautiful flowers and give them to Deepak, he'll forgive me."

The dirty pup approached the flowers and got to digging and it wasn't long before nearly all of them were uprooted. Diesel smiled in satisfaction at his work when suddenly, a bloodcurdling scream pierced the air. He looked up to see Clarissa staring out her window in shock at her destroyed garden. She was completely speechless due to the sheer amount of anger and disgust surging through her body.

As if on cue, Dylan popped out from under the fence and smiled nervously at Clarissa, "Um, hi Clarissa. I'm so sorry my brother got into the roses. There's just so many siblings I gotta keep track of. You understand, uhhhhh right? Heh heh. Look, I'll just take my little brother with me and go. Have yourself a wonderful day, ma'am."

And with that, Dylan dragged Diesel out of the corgi's garden and brought him back to the main house. There was a silence between the two before Diesel spoke up, "Wha-"

"You're grounded." Dylan interrupted the dirty little pup.

"But why?" Diesel tilted his head in confusion, raising his unibrow.

"You destroyed someone else's personal property so I'm putting you in time out." Dylan explained, crossing his arms while giving Diesel a stern glare.

Diesel's ears wilted and his eyes begin to slowly fill with tears, "But...I was just trying to make Deepak not mad at me anymore."

"I beg your pardon?" Dylan blinked, raising an eyebrow.

"I was digging up some apology flowers to give to him." Diesel explained, "I thought he would like some pretty roses." With a sniffle, a tear rolled down Diesel's cheek and left a muddy streak down his face.

Dylan's expression softened at this and he wiped the dirty tear away with his thumb, "Awww, I know you mean well but mom and dad are still going to need to know about what you did. You need to take responsibility for your actions."

Just then, the doorbell rang and Dolly pressed her paw to the scanner. As soon as the door opened, she saw Clarissa standing before her and her expression soured at the sight of the rich, snooty corgi, "What do you want?"

"I thought I'd ask Diesel to help me fix the mess he made in my garden." Clarissa replied with the usual smug look on her face.

"Wait a sec, I'm gonna go talk to Dylan about this." Dolly said with a hint of suspicion in her voice.

The tomboy darted off to where Dylan was scolding Diesel in the time out corner and tapped him on the shoulder, "Clarissa would like to see Diesel."

"Really?" Dylan blinked in surprise.

"If you ask me, I wouldn't trust her." Dolly whispered to her brother as she elbowed him.

The corgi forced her way into the house, approaching Dylan, "But you can trust me Dylan. Think about it, by doing this, Diesel will learn a lesson in responsibility. The least he could do is help me fix my garden."

Dylan rubbed his chin in thought, "You know, you may be onto something. All right, Diesel you're ungrounded but only so you can help fix the mess you made."

"Do I get to dig?" Diesel asked, perking up a bit.

"Hey, if it helps restore Clarissa's garden, dig to your heart's content." Dylan replied cheerfully. Dolly could only facepalm and shake her head at Dylan's unexpected burst of naivety. She couldn't help but feel that Clarissa had some sort of ulterior motive for wanting Diesel. There was no other way Clarissa would act so friendly and polite.

Before she could set out on her decision to follow Clarissa, a large crash was heard and she saw Dizzy and Dee Dee giggling while Dawkins chased them, "Dolly, could you please keep an eye on these two? They've been pestering me all morning."

Dolly groaned, "All right, all right. I'll watch them for you, Dawkins."

"Thank you ever so much, Dolly." Dawkins replied, "Now I can get back to working on my inventions in peace."

Clarissa grinned at this. Now there was no way Dolly would meddle in her affairs.

Happily, Diesel hopped out of his time out corner and followed Clarissa out the door. Little did he know, it was going to be the last time he ever saw his family because as soon as he followed Clarissa into her shed to grab some gardening tools, the corgi struck him over the head with a shovel, a smirk of cold satisfaction on her muzzle.


	2. Pure Evil

About 4 hours passed since Diesel was sent to Clarissa's house. There was a knock at the door as Dylan and Dolly prepared the pups for bed. Dylan turned to Dante who was quietly sulking around in a dark corner, "Hey Dante, I'm a bit tied up here so can you get the door?"

"Okay. Whatever." Dante groaned, crawling out of the darkness and into the main area where he pressed his paw to the scanner. As the door opened, a smug yet bloodstained Clarissa stood before him with a smirk on her face. The goth made direct eye contact and what he saw in the corgi's eyes sent chills down his spine. There was nothing but pure evil in those eyes. In one paw, she held a collar that was stained with dirt and blood. In the other, was a flash drive. Clarissa took a deep breath as if enjoying the smell of mountain air before opening her mouth to speak, "I caught your filthy ruff raff brother trying to dig in my garden." She handed the collar and flash drive to Dante who accepted them with a look of horror on his face.

"And so...you killed him?" Dante asked slowly, feeling tears sting his eyelids.

"Bingo! Pretty smart for a Halloween reject." Clarissa laughed out loud, "Let this be a lesson to all you spotted commoners."

And with that, Clarissa turned tail and left. Dante just stared at the objects in his paws as Dolly approached him and tapped his shoulder, "So what did that snob want?"

Dante literally had no verbal answer. All he did was let out a pained whimper as he handed the items to the tomboy. Dolly stared at the objects with a confused look, "What's this?"

"Diesel...or what's left of him." Dante choked out. Dolly stared in disbelief and then noticed that Dante had tears dripping off his nose as his body trembled with sobs.

Gasping in horror, Dolly felt sick to her stomach. She opened her mouth and uttered a soft "No."

Dylan had just gotten back from tucking the last puppy in when he noticed Dolly clutching Diesel's bloody collar and Dante sobbing nearby. Immediately, his jaw dropped and a wave of shock and horror washed over him. Right away, Dylan knew something bad happened to Diesel. The fact that Dolly had tears streaming down her face as well was all the proof he needed. Gulping back the lump in his throat, the science nerd spoke up, "Is...that what I think it is?"

"IT'S THE END OF THE WORLD! CLARISSA MURDERED DIESEL!" Dante abruptly shouted through tears. By some miracle, the goth's yelling didn't wake the puppies up.

Slowly, Dylan took Diesel's bloody collar into his own paws and closed his eyes. All the memories of the happy, dirty little pup flooded through his mind and it wasn't long before he was shedding tears of his own. At that moment, Dylan knew that Clarissa was no longer the obnoxious snob next door but a cold-blooded monster. How could she commit an act of such cruelty on a being that was so innocent? The more he thought about Diesel's final moments, the more and more the anger rose within him. Dylan's heart was telling him to throttle Clarissa until there was nothing left but his mind knew that no matter how hard he beat up that disgusting snob, it wouldn't bring Diesel back.

Dylan, Dolly and Dante all sat together, crying softly as all the good memories of Diesel flashed through their minds when suddenly, the front door unlocked and Delilah had entered the house. She looked around the house and all the pups were asleep, save for the two oldest and the resident goth who were all sobbing as they stared down at Diesel's bloody collar and the flash drive before them.

Delilah's blood ran cold as her newly bought groceries fell out of her mouth, "What happened to Diesel?"

"C-C-Clarissa h-hurt him...and it's all my fault." Dylan choked through sobs, bitter tears running down his muzzle as his heart broke more and more with each word.

"What?" Delilah sputtered, a look of shock on her face.

"Wh-when you were away..." Dylan paused to let out a watery sniffle, "Diesel t-t-tore up Clarissa's r-rose garden s-so I g-g-gave him a time out and then..."

"Clarissa arrived at the house and Dylan sent Diesel to help fix the mess he made." Dolly finished Dylan's sentence, able to control her tears unlike Dylan who was practically an emotional wreck.

"I should've n-never let him a-alone with her." Dylan sobbed openly, "H-how could I have been s-s-so s-stupid?"

Whimpering, Dante picked up the collar in his mouth and presented it to their mother. He had no words and all he could do was just stare at Delilah with big, watery eyes.

Closing her eyes, Delilah picked up the distinct coppery scent of blood on Diesel's collar and she raised her head and stared at her pups with an emotionless look on her face, "The three of you, hand over the flash drive and go to bed. Whatever's on it is for my eyes only."

"But what about dad?" Dolly sniffed, rubbing at her eyes.

"His heart won't be able to handle the contents, I'm afraid." Delilah calmly explained, "You know how he gets. Now the three of you, off to bed."

"Yes, mom." Dante replied submissively, crawling over to his dark corner with his ears and tail drooping.

Dylan sighed, knowing that it would be awfully hard to sleep as he was haunted by thoughts of Diesel's smiling, silly face but agreed with Dante while Dolly reluctantly followed him. Delilah nodded sternly and went up to the attic where no pups were sleeping. Popping the flash drive into the computer, Delilah loaded up her computer and began to watch the video.

_Diesel was being cornered in a dimly lit room by a visibly angry female corgi. He had a bump on his head from where Clarissa previously struck him with the shovel. _

_"So you thought you could get away with tearing up my flower bed?" Clarissa growled at the shivering, dirty pup._

_"I'm sorry. Please don't hurt me..." Diesel whimpered apologetically, his usual happy demeanor replaced with fear and terror._

_"You filthy ruff raff are all the same but a disgusting retard like you shouldn't be allowed to breathe the same air as me. You truly are the lowest of the low." Clarissa scolded the now whimpering pup._

_"I didn't mean to..." Diesel sobbed, tears mixing with the dirt on his face._

_In an instant, Clarissa grabbed Diesel by his throat and pinned him to the wall, "You have so many brothers and sisters, I don't think they'll care if ONE little mongrel is missing but that doesn't matter. I'm going to LET them know and I just can't wait to see their sobbing little faces when they find out that you're gone for good!"_

_Before Diesel could say another word, Clarissa slammed him against the wall and a loud crack was heard. Diesel let out a scream and the corgi just kept slamming him against the wall. Every time she slammed him, he screamed out the name of a family member, trying in vain to call for help._

_"Mum!"_

_"Dad!"_

_"Dante!"_

_"Dawkins!"_

_"Da Vinci!"_

_"Dolly!"_

_"Dylan!"_

_Diesel kept this mantra up until his strength faded and everything went black. His screams fell on deaf ears. Slowly, he slid down the wall and left a big, bloody streak down it as he collapsed into a lifeless state. _

The video ended and Delilah just stared. Although her face was devoid of emotion, nothing but pure hatred for the corgi burned within her. Taking a deep breath, she shut down the laptop and removed the flash drive. Slowly, she exited the attic and gave Dylan and Dolly a soft kiss on the head as they somehow cried themselves to sleep. Walking to the front door, Delilah pressed her paw to the scanner and stepped through the doggy door outside. Only one thing was on her mind, the thought of a certain corgi's head mounted on the wall above their fireplace.


	3. Sweet Revenge

Clarissa's doorbell rang and the corgi came to answer the door. Much to Delilah's surprise, Clarissa didn't seem upset at all for having her beauty sleep ruined. In fact, she seemed almost unnaturally happy as she warmly greeted the mother dalmatian into her home, "Come in, Delilah. Perhaps we could discuss this over a cup of midnight tea together?"

Delilah showed no emotion outwardly as she stepped into the corgi's mansion, "I saw what you did to my son. Tell me the whereabouts of his body and I might go easy on you."

Clarissa's false smile became more twisted, "So you're here about that rotten sack of fleas and dirt I exterminated? Of course I'll show you his body. After all, every mother deserves quality time with her child. Follow me to the river. Needed to wash the dirt off the filth-ridden mongrel."

Delilah nodded blankly and followed Clarissa out of her house. The two of them walked towards the river. The entire way, Clarissa bragged to Delilah about how she brutally tortured Diesel to death, the way his bones cracked and how the sound of his screams was music to her ears. She then went on to talk about what sort of paint would best cover up the big, bloody smear he left of the wall after she repeatedly beat him against it until he stopped moving. Delilah listened intently to Clarissa's bragging without a word, trying her best to keep her emotions in check and not outright tear the corgi's head clean off at the moment.

After a bit of walking, the two arrived at the river. The moonlight reflected upon the water's surface as Delilah took a deep breath, "Tell me where my son is."

Frantically, Clarissa looked around and started to fake a panic attack, "I...I...I...he must've washed downstream. You know, river currents and all."

With a sigh, Delilah looked away as a tear slid down her face and dripped into the peaceful water.

But as soon as she turned her back, Clarissa charged at her with the intent of knocking her into the water. Delilah swiftly dodged the attack before pinning Clarissa to the ground, "So you thought you could try to murder my son and gloat about it? Just how stupid are you?"

Clarissa gagged as Delilah squeezed her throat, "I...I...I"

"Apparently, your hideous flower garden is more important than my son's life." Delilah continued, now choking the corgi, "Do you have any idea of the suffering you've just caused?"

"Yes I do..." The corgi grinned twistedly, coughing a bit, "And I don't regret it one bit. As far as I'm concerned, getting my paws dirty with that filthy brat's blood was a necessary sacrifice."

A wave of pure anger and hatred washed over Delilah as she dragged Clarissa to the river and slammed her face first into the water, dunking her over and over again until she stopped moving. Finally, she chucked the rich, fat bitch into the river and watched as the current slowly carried her downstream. Breathing a deep sigh, the mother walked off into the night. She needed some time to clear her head after everything that happened.

Meanwhile, the door to the Dalmatian house rang and Dylan sprung awake, making his way to the front door. Rubbing the sleep from his eyes, he used the scanner and saw Fergus standing before him with Diesel's unconscious body draped over his back. The fox and his gang all had looks of extreme worry on their faces as Fergus spoke up, "Dylan? I think something happened to Diesel. He looks really hurt. Someone did a number on the poor lad."

Immediately, Dylan perked up and he threw his arms around Fergus, hugging his fox friend tight, "So...so he's alive?"

"Barely. He's still breathing." Fergus replied, patting Dylan on the back.

Dylan broke down in sobs of relief, his tears drenching the fox's fur before he pulled away and stared at Fergus with big, tear-filled eyes, "Let's take him to Dawkins. He's been studying medicine and recently built a life support machine with mom's help just in case of emergency."

As if on cue, both Dolly and Dante woke up and they ran up to Dylan and Fergus, "Is that who I think it is?" Dolly and Dante asked in unison.

"Diesel's in critical condition." Dylan explained, hanging his head.

"We need to bring him to Dawkins pronto." Fergus added, "Or else he won't last much longer."

Dolly nodded and immediately dashed upstairs where she shook Dawkins awake. The genius pup rubbed his eyes are gave Dolly an annoyed look, "Dolly, its 3 in the morning. Why are you waking me up at this hour?"

"Diesel got hurt and needs medical attention. He's literally about to die!" Dolly replied frantically, pointing downstairs.

"Wh-WHAT?!" Dawkins blurted out.

"It's a long story, just put him on the life support machine and we'll fill you in." Dolly replied, rushing downstairs.

"Affirmative." Dawkins nodded without hesitation, following his big sister down the stairs.

When he reached the bottom, he saw a sight that made him stomach churn. Diesel was laid out across the floor, beaten and covered in bruises, cuts and dripping wet from being in the river. The image of the vibrant yet dirty puppy in such terrible condition was enough to make the genius break his usual professional attitude yet he swiftly blinked back the tears and swallowed a lump in his throat. He looked over to Dylan whose eyes were still red from crying and Fergus who was gently petting Dante's back in an attempt to calm the goth pup.

"Please help him..." Dylan begged tearfully, looking emotionally destroyed.

"He...he can't die. He just can't." Dante choked out, a tear running down his muzzle as he sadly stared down at his paws.

Dawkins closed his eyes and took a deep breath, "I'll see what I can do."

And so, they brought all Diesel's limp yet still breathing body into Dawkins' lab where they lay him out on a table. The young genius hooked a bunch of machines to Diesel's body and everyone waited. The next morning, everyone was filled in on the news about what happened to Diesel and there wasn't a dry eye in the house. The atmosphere become extremely somber and the loud sound of puppies playing was replaced by eerie silence that was only broken by the sound of an occasional pups' sobs. When Doug finally arrived home, Dawkins informed him of what happened and the father was completely devastated. Upon seeing him enter the house, Dolly ran up to Doug and just cried into his arms but there was one pup who took the news even harder than Doug and that was Deepak. The little zen pup had actually fainted and when he came to, all he could do was scream and cry hysterically. No eating, no sleeping, no meditation, no yoga, just fountains of tears gushing out of his eyes. The memory of him yelling at Diesel played through his mind like a movie on loop and Dylan even had to feed Deepak through tubes because he refused to eat normally.

Nearly two weeks passed with Diesel on life support and he was showing no signs of improving. Finally, Dylan placed a paw on Dawkins' shoulder, "I know it's a hard thing to say but...we gotta pull the plug on Diesel."

Dawkins squeezed his eyes shut and shook his head, "No...nonononono...I'm a genius, Dylan. Someone of my intellectual calibur should be able to somehow revive Diesel."

"You've done everything you can do to help him." Dylan replied sadly, "Now it's time to let go."

"But that's not fair!" Dawkins wept, hot tears of anger streaming down his muzzle like rivers as he punched Dylan repeatedly in the chest. No matter how hard he punched, the genius' fists hit as hard as pillows.

"It's not about you, Dawkins." Dylan responded, tenderly licking the tears from his assistant's muzzle as he endured Dawkins' feather-light punches, "It's about Diesel. At this stage, he's practically a vegetable and there's nothing we can do to save him. It's time to say goodbye."

All Dawkins could do was respond by sobbing angrily into Dylan's chest. Dylan looked over to Dante who was sitting by the plug and took a deep breath, "Cut the life support, Dante."

"Are...you...sure?" Dante asked slowly, tears building up in his baggy eyes.

"Yes."

Hanging his head sadly, Dante wrapped his paws around the plug and pulled it from the wall. And just like that, Diesel flatlined.

To be continued...


	4. Regrets

Dylan drew in a shaky breath, tears falling from his eyes as he watched his dirty little brother breathe his last breath. He could feel the heat of Dawkins' tears soaking through the fur of his chest. Gently rubbing his assistant's back, he spoke up, "I know it hurts, Dawkins but we need to hold a meeting."

Dawkins pulled away from Dylan and could only sadly nod in response. Dante turned and frowned at the two nerds, "If anyone needs me, I'll be sulking away in my shadowy corner, trying to contemplate the fragility of life."

Shaking his head, Dylan stepped out of the workshop and into the main area. Immediately, he felt 97 pairs of eyes staring at him and his heart sank like a stone as he cleared his throat to speak, "I'm so sorry to inform you all but...Diesel passed away last n-"

A bloodcurdling scream suddenly cut through the moment of silence and all eyes turned their attention towards Deepak who instantly jumped up and dashed out the door at a speed that left Delgado in complete awe. Dylan sighed and shook his head, "I'll go catch him, the rest of you carry on with mourning."

Running through the streets of Camden Town, Deepak rushed as fast as his little legs could carry him. He was sobbing so hard he could barely breathe as tears burned his eyes like acid, blinding him. He didn't care which direction he was running or if he was in any danger of getting run over. He just wanted to get away from everything as far as he could until he passed out from exhaustion. Darting in and out of traffic, Deepak was so overcome by grief that he couldn't even hear Dylan shouting for him to come back.

Finally, he made it to the park where he tripped and fell, planting face first into the grass. Defeated, Deepak buried his face to the earth and cried, his salty tears blending with the fresh morning dew.

"THAT'S ENOUGH!" Dylan's angry voice shouted. The next thing Deepak knew, he was being flipped over and pinned down by his big brother. The small pup gazed deep into Dylan's seething, furious face, "ARE YOU STUPID, DEEPAK? YOU COULD'VE GOTTEN KILLED! WHAT WERE YOU THINKING?!" Deepak gulped. He had never seen Dylan look so mad in his life.

"IT'S ALL MY FAULT THAT DIESEL IS DEAD!" Deepak wailed, tears streaming like waterfalls down his face, "If...if...if I h-hadn't y-y-yelled at him, h-he would still b-b-be..."

Deepak couldn't even finish his sentence and let out a loud scream before choking back sobs. As he sobbed, there was a long silence between him and Dylan. Then, the small zen pup felt something wet dripping onto his muzzle. He licked it off and was met by a distinctly saline flavor. Looking up, he noticed that Dylan's face was contorted in emotional pain and he was crying as well. The tear he had tasted was not his own but Dylan's. Deepak felt like his heart had been ripped out of his chest and smashed by a sledgehammer, "Oh Dylan...I...I'm so sorry, I..."

"Just don't you EVER scare me like that again!" Dylan scolded his younger brother, hugging him tight, "After losing Diesel, there's no way I can afford to lose any of you as well."

Deepak whimpered softly as he buried his face in Dylan's chest. All he could do was apologize profusely to his big brother as he cried his eyes out. Eventually, he fell asleep in Dylan's arms with a warm and gentle smile on his sweet face.

Meanwhile, back at the house, everyone was mourning. Paint-dyed tears dripped freely off of Da Vinci's chin and left colorful wet spots on the wood floor as Delgado stroked her back to try and comfort her. The triplets were bawling their eyes out and even the Dimitris were hugging each other and crying openly. Doug was curled up on the couch, weeping softly into a pillow which Dizzy and Dee Dee tried to cuddle him for comfort. DJ was whimpering softly as he listened to REM's "Everybody Hurts" through his headphones.

Dante sobbed quietly into his paws, salty tears seeping through his purple fingers as he sat alone in the shadows. The fact that Dylan made him be Diesel's own personal angel of death deeply tore his heart up. The sound of the flatline still rang through his ears, haunting him to his very core. Meanwhile, Dawkins rested his head against the wall, pounding against it angrily with his fist as he cursed his own abilities under his breath while Delilah slowly and sadly stroked Diesel's cold, dead face.

Dolly just couldn't stop crying no matter how many times she wiped her eyes. It was then that Dolly felt a tap on her shoulder. Clearing her eyes, she looked over to see Fergus whose ears were wilted and how had a look a deep sadness in his eyes, "Dolly, I think now's about the time I shared a secret with you."

"S-Secret?" Dolly sniffled in anger, "In case you haven't noticed, Diesel just DIED and YOU want to share a secret with me?!"

"I know it seems out of the blue but let's go someplace private to discuss it." Fergus replied, walking out the door.

Nodding in irritation, Dolly followed him outside and the two of them walked over to Dylan's treehouse where they climbed up the ladder. The tomboy crossed her arms and glared at her vulpine friend, "So tell me what's so important that you have to interrupt my mourning?"

"It's about how I got my gold tooth." Fergus replied, his ears wilting as he hung his head, "And how I lost my big brother."

"Say what?" Dolly raised an eyebrow.

The fox sadly shook his head, "Back when I was just a wee fox cub, I had a big brother named Ferris who was...different than most of the other foxes. He was the daftest fox I've ever met but he didn't have a mean bone in his body. As a matter of fact, he was very much like Diesel. Even though he was older than I was, I was always the one looking out for him. But then...the fox hunt happened."

Dolly's irritation turned to sympathy as she slowly placed a paw on Fergus' back. He breathed a sigh as he continued his story, "Ferris didn't want to leave our home no matter how much I begged him to. He was so stubborn that he just wouldn't budge and that's when I heard a shot. I...I looked over and saw that Ferris was bleeding so I rushed to help him. I got shot in the face and somehow, I only lost a tooth. Ferris wasn't so lucky..."

At this point, Fergus felt himself choke up as tears started forming in his eyes, "I tried to help him but they kept shooting at us. Ferris told me that everything was going to be okay..."

A sob escaped the fox's throat as his usually cool exterior started to crack, "But everything wasn't okay at all, I watched from a nearby hill as they dragged his body into their lorry...I...never got to say goodbye."

Fergus sniffled and looked away from Dolly, tears rolling down his snout as his calm attitude broke down before her. What Dolly was looking at wasn't the Fergus she knew but a hurt and frightened cub trapped in a teen fox's body. Watching the tears roll down Fergus' snout and drip off the tip of his nose was one of the most surreal things Dolly had ever witnessed. Squeezing her eyes shut, Dolly immediately tackled the crying fox into a close and tight hug, wrapping her arms around him. Resting his head on Dolly's shoulder, Fergus let himself cry openly as she stroked his back. The fox's tears rained upon Dolly's fur as she squeezed him while trying her hardest not to cry as well.

Eventually, Dolly broke away from Fergus as the fox dried his eyes. She was trying to think of something to say to him but was at a loss for words. This was more than likely the first and last time she'd ever see Fergus cry and all she knew was that she never, ever wanted to see the cool fox show such raw emotion like that ever again. Finally, she cleared her throat and spoke up, "Fergus, I...I don't even know where to start, I..."

The fox hushed Dolly and closed his eyes, "Promise me that you'll never tell the Canal Crew about Ferris. Okay, Dolly?"

Dolly nodded slowly but felt confused, "Why not?"

"I just don't want to cry like that in front of them." Fergus replied, "In case you haven't noticed, tears really aren't my thing."

"That's okay, dude." Dolly replied, patting Fergus on the back, "You're secret safe with me."

The two of them shared a fist bump when a knock was heard at the door. Dolly rushed to open it and saw Dylan and Deepak standing there, Deepak since having woken up from his nap. Dylan blinked a few times in confusion, "What are the two of you doing in my treehouse alone together?"

"Just had some emotional baggage to offload onto Dolly, lad." Fergus replied with a smile, "Personal stuff."

"Yeah." Dolly nodded in agreement, "And your treehouse is literally the only private space on our property."

Dylan rolled his eyes at this, "You know, the bathroom is just as good a space to hold private conversations."

"It echoes in there." Fergus replied matter-of-factly with a shrug.

"Sure." Dylan snorted in irritation, "So will you be attending the funeral?"

"Maybe." Fergus shrugged, "I'll think about it. My schedule might be booked."

"Oh, you and your schedule." Dylan replied with an annoyed tone in his voice.

"I was just kidding, Dyl." Fergus laughed out loud, "Of course I'll attend Diesel's funeral."

Finally, Deepak cleared his throat and spoke up, "May I suggest we all cleanse ourselves in a soothing mudbath so we can be one with Diesel's spirit?"

Dylan, Dolly and Fergus all stared at Deepak with confused looks on their faces as the zen puppy just gave a sheepish chuckle, "Just an idea. Meow-wow-wow."


	5. Requiem

The melancholy sound of a guitar chord filled the air as the Dalmatian family gathered in the backyard. Dante sat atop the balcony of Dylan's treehouse, strumming an acoustic guitar while singing into a microphone that was hooked up to a sound system.

_I close my eyes, only for a moment, and the moment's gone_

_All my dreams pass before my eyes, a curiosity_

_Dust in the wind_

_All they are is dust in the wind_

_Same old song, just a drop of water in an endless sea_

_All we do crumbles to the ground though we refuse to see_

_Dust in the wind_

_All we are is dust in the wind_

_Now, don't hang on, nothing lasts forever but the earth and sky_

_It slips away_

_And all your money won't another minute buy_

_Dust in the wind_

_All we are is dust in the wind_

_Dust in the wind_

_Everything is dust in the wind_

_The wind_

Despite his dark and gothic outer looks, Dante had a surprisingly beautiful and hauntingly angelic singing voice as he covered the 1970s classic rock song. After he finished his singing, everyone quietly applauded his performance. Even Fergus got goosebumps from Dante's singing. Even though DJ was easily the best when it came to instruments, his singing voice paled in comparison to the goth's. Everyone's attention turned from Dante to face the casket that held Diesel's body.

It wasn't just the puppies gathered in the backyard but many of their friends as well. Predictably, Roxy was hysterically bawling a mess of tears and snot while Hansel let a few silent tears run down his snout from his beautiful ice blue eyes. Big Fee hugged Sid who just couldn't stop crying while Portia and Spencer watched emotionlessly as everyone else cried their hearts out. Apparently, funerals were a spectator sport for Portia despite the fact that there was no competition involved in the first place.

"My money's on Doug to cry the hardest." Portia spoke to Spencer.

"Personally, I think Deepak will cry ever harder than Doug." Spencer stated, "He's quite the fragile one but Dylan looks like he'll break down pretty hard once he delivers his eulogy."

"Actually, I changed my mind, looks like Roxy is in the lead." Portia countered as she watched the bawling rottweiler.

"Are you guys seriously betting on who cries the hardest at a funeral?" Fergus asked, actually feeling somewhat disgusted by the duo, "That is sooooooo tasteless."

Dawkins whimpered softly as he cradled his Princess Positron doll and looked over to Dylan with a sad look in his eyes. Dylan frowned back, patting his tearful assistant, "Dawkins...it's not your fault. Your machine did all it could to keep Diesel alive."

"I know..." Dawkins sniffled, "I just wish I took the time to build it better..."

"You can't keep blaming yourself over what happened." Dylan said, wiping Dawkins' tears away, "I've also blamed myself but in the end, the only one to blame is Clarissa."

"I don't even believe in a hell but I hope that monster rots in it for what she's done." Dawkins hissed angrily, clutching his doll tightly to his chest.

Deepak looked over to Da Vinci who was using her maroon handkerchief to wipe the colorful tears running down her face, "Da Vinci?"

"What is it?" The artist asked, trying to gain her composure.

"Do you think I'm at fault for what happened to Diesel?" Deepak asked, tears brimming in his worried eyes, "If I didn't yell at him, do you think he'd still be alive?"

Da Vinci sighed and shook her head, "Honestly, I don't think you're the reason he's gone. It was Diesel's choice to dig up Clarissa's garden and Clarissa's choice to retaliate like that." She sniffed softly as Deepak watched a lime green tear leave a bright neon streak down her snout and drip off her nose, "All I know is that things just won't be the same around here without him."

"The more I think about it, the more I lose my zen." Deepak whined, trying his very hardest not to cry himself.

"So don't think about it then." Da Vinci replied, wiping her tears with her paint-stained paws and making an even more colorful mess of her face, "Think about all the happy times you shared with him. I know it's hard but you've got to be strong for his sake. I don't think Diesel would want to see you like this."

"If...if you say so." Deepak sniffled, dragging his paw across his eyes.

"Now if you'll excuse me, I have to go wash my face." Da Vinci replied, "I really do hate crying, it always ends up making me look like a sad clown."

Fergus was rolling his eyes at Portia and Spencer when he felt a tap on his shoulder. He spun around to see Delilah looking at him, "Fergus, I think I'd like to have a word with you in private."

"Sure thing." Fergus replied and the two of them walked away from the crowd to the side of the house, "So what do you want to tell me?"

"I murdered Clarissa." Delilah confessed to the fox, "She tried to charge me into the river when I confronted her about Diesel but she missed so I held her down under the water til she stopped breathing."

"Why are you telling me this?" Fergus blinked, raising an eyebrow.

"I just need to get it off my chest. There's no way I could tell this to my husband and I don't want the pups to worry about me getting arrested by Pearl." Delilah replied, "Poor Doug is already heartbroken over the loss of Diesel, the last thing he needs is to lose me."

"I understand." Fergus nodded, "Don't worry, Delilah. You're secret safe with me. The crew and I have run-ins with Pearl all the time so we aren't exactly best buds with her or anything. I'm just glad you kicked that bitch out of our little community. Maybe things will be more peaceful around here without her."

Meanwhile, back in the main area, Dylan took center stage from where Dante stood previously, the gloomy goth had once again retreated into the shadows. In a way, he had just delivered his eulogy to Diesel in song form and now just wanted to be left alone. Clearing his throat, Dylan spoke into the microphone, "Attention, everyone. We are here to mourn the loss of a beloved family member. That one fateful January night, Diesel was taken from us so here we all stand in remembrance of him. For the last couple of weeks, we've all been crying our eyes out but today is a day for closure. Today is the day that we put Diesel to rest. But before we do that, I'd like to show off a beautiful painting of Diesel made by Da Vinci as well as a slideshow that DJ put together."

And with that, the painting was unveiled and the slideshow started playing on the screen. Immediately, the audience was met with several pictures of Diesel as a melancholy song played. Doug was practically bawling, rivers of tears streaming down his muzzle as Dolly hugged him close. The triplets were absolutely hysterical while poor little Deepak was drowning in his own tears. Dawkins cuddled his doll close to him, doing anything he could to fight back the waterworks as Delgado cried into his paws. Dante was sniffling quietly in the shadows, there was no way he would watch the slideshow after having pulled the plug, the poor goth's heart just couldn't handle the image of Diesel's smiling face. Dorothy was too young to quite grasp the concept of death so she just licked Doug's tears away to try and comfort him which only made the dad cry even harder.

After the slideshow and everyone calmed down a bit, a silence washed over the yard. Closing his eyes, Dylan drew in a shaky breath as he approached the casket. He absolutely hated public speaking but he felt like he had something to prove. Sniffling, he took a deep breath before speaking into the microphone, "Diesel was...my brother. He was all our brother's. I...I remember the time Diesel made our house a c-complete mess. H-how he almost flooded the house when he became t-top dog. And that time when we solved the c-crime of who vandalized the park...those were the good times." Dylan paused to wipe his eyes before continuing, "Without him around, our house is going to be much cleaner but also much emptier. I'll miss the way he'd tunnel under the house just cause he'd like doing so, I'll miss the way he'd track mud around the living room and how I'll have to clean up after him but most of all, I'll miss that big, silly smile of his." A single tear escaped Dylan's eye, rolling off his snout and landing on the casket, "I'm so sorry, I...I c-can't hold it in anymore."

And with that, Dylan completely broke down weeping. Immediately, Delilah rushed over to Dylan's side as he sobbed by the casket and pulled him into a close hug. Squeezing his eyes shut, Dylan cried openly in his mother's arms when he felt a large paw resting on his back. Clearing his eyes, he looked up to see Doug smiling down at him tearfully, "C...can I join the hug? I..."

"D-don't be silly, dad..." Dylan whimpered, his face drenched from crying, "We're always open to a hug."

And just like that, the hivemind of puppies' ears perked up at the trigger word and everyone with the exception of Dolly and Dante joined in on the tearful group hug.

Meanwhile, Dolly had climbed the treehouse and stepped into the shadowy area where she saw Dante's silhouette hunched over in sadness, "Hey bro, is everything all right?"

"Miserable." Dante replied softly, looking away. Not even his beloved shadows could obscure the tear tracks on his face.

Dolly reached out into the darkness and placed a paw on Dante's shoulder, "Tell me about it."

"I'd rather not." Dante said, sounding broken.

"You know." Dolly cleared her throat, trying to make conversation, "I saw Fergus crying earlier. He was pretty torn up over what happened to Diesel. I don't think I've ever seen him actually cry before."

"That so?" Dante sniffed, "First time for everything, I guess."

Dolly sighed and stared down at her paws before looking back up at the goth's shadowy figure, "Look Dante, you're my bro. If there's anything you need to talk about, anything to get off your chest, a shoulder to cry on, I'll always be there. You don't have to sit around, pouting in the darkness all the time."

There was no verbal reply from Dante. With a shrug, Dolly got up and started to walk away when he called her from the darkness, "Dolly?"

"Yeah?"

"Thanks for actually taking the time to talk to me." Dante replied, his voice a little shaky, "Most everybody just writes me off as the weird goth pup who sulks in dark corners and screams about the apocalypse half the time. Thanks for actually treating me like family and not like some Halloween spook. Not a whole lot of people pay attention to me cause they think I just act the way I act for attention so what you just told me means a lot."

"You're welcome, bro." Dolly sniffled, eyes welling up with tears again, "Y...you're welcome. So...are you gonna join the group hug outside?"

"Afraid not." Dante replied bluntly, "Got too much on my mind. Feels like the weight on the world. Just need some alone time."

"That's fine, I understand." Dolly replied, pulling the goth into a quick hug before moving away, "I'll see you later, Dante."


	6. A Goth's Concern

It had been a week since Diesel's funeral and Deepak was sitting on a yoga mat, attempting to find his zen but even after his talk with Dylan, he still felt an emptiness inside of him. Every time he would start a mantra, he'd just break down crying and be unable to meditate because whenever he closed his eyes, Diesel's silly face flashed through his mind. He had also become noticeably more emaciated as he just didn't have the appetite.

Dante stepped out of the shadows, pushing the bowl of food with his muzzle towards Deepak and shoved it in his face, "Eat up. Dylan's orders. It's organic, just the way you like it."

Deepak blinked, staring down at the bowl with watery eyes before turning up his nose and scoffing at the goth, "Sorry, not hungry."

"So what?" Dante rolled his eyes, "You need to stop blaming yourself for what happened to Diesel. Look, what if an asteroid fell from the sky tomorrow and knocked my head clean off my body just leaving a bloody neck stump behind? Would Dylan go on a hunger strike and blame himself? I don't think so. What happened, happened. You need to stop being a baby and get over it. Either you eat like a normal dog or go back on the feeding tube."

"But...but I'm not Dylan. I'm Deepak." Deepak pouted, "And furthermore, I just don't feel like eating especially given that image you planted in my head. And I'm not going back to that weird feeding tube either so just leave me alone."

A unexpected wave of anger surged through Dante and he raised his paw, smacking Deepak clear across his face. Deepak rubbed his stinging cheek with his paw and then made direct eye contact with Dante whose face was contorted in emotional pain as he visibly fought back tears, "Fine. Starve. Be my guest. We'll dig another grave next to Diesel's with YOUR name on it. As a matter of fact, I'm gonna help write your obituary now. If anything, I'M the one who should be starving myself! Have you ever wondered what it would be like to put on the grim reaper's robe? CAUSE I SURE HAVE! I was the one who pulled the plug and took Diesel off life support so MY paws are far dirtier than YOUR paws ever could be SO STOP ACTING LIKE A SPOILED BRAT AND JUST GROW THE HELL UP!"

Deepak was completely taken aback by Dante's outburst but then he noticed the goth was weeping softly, hot tears trickling down his face as his frame trembled with sobs. Slowly, Deepak wrapped his arms around Dante and hugged him close. Dante made no attempt to squirm out of the hug as he wrapped his own paws around Deepak. After a few minutes of sobbing, the goth pulled away and wiped his eyes, "Sorry for lashing out at you like that. Just had a lot on my mind."

"It's okay, brother Dante." Deepak nodded, "Sometimes it's healthy to get frustrations out of one's system."

"I just don't want another pup dying again." Dante replied, his breathing returning to normal as a final tear rolled down his snout, "I don't wanna lose any more of you."

"That's what Dylan told me when I ran off to the park." Deepak sniffled, wiping his nose with his paw. Gingerly, the yin-yang pattenered puppy leaned in close and licked Dante's tear off his snout in a brotherly fashion. He cringed a bit at the salty taste but it felt like the right thing to do.

"Just promise me that you'll look after yourself, okay?" Dante said, trying to his best to smile, "It's not just you, every last one of us is hurting. Even those who aren't even part of our family. Heck, Dolly even told me that she saw Fergus crying and he never cries. We'll all get through this together but it'll take time."

"Okay, Dante." Deepak replied softly, nuzzling the gothic teen puppy, "I promise."

"So please do us all a favor and eat something." Dante said, nuzzling the yoga puppy back, "You need to heal your body before you can heal your spirit."

"I guess your right, Dante." Deepak sighed, "All right, I'll eat."

"That's all I can really ask for." Dante chuckled as Deepak dug into his bowl of organic kibble.

The end.


End file.
